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So today was my second tap practice with the dance team. It was helpful going into practice with the mindset that I will most likely mess up. Somehow lower expectations for my technique helped me pay more attention to the choreographers rather than being distracted by the fact that I’m certainly less than an expert at this genre.

The hardest part of re-learning tap at my school, however, deals with the fact that we are not allowed to wear tap shoes in the dance studios so as to not ruin the floors. Unfortunately, I can’t entirely hear my output as much as I would like to. I tried wearing sneakers once to better hear my combinations, but I think since my sounds didn’t match what I heard around me, it only confused me more.

On a side note, one of my classmates asked which genres I would be dancing in this year. When I said tap, she immediately began asking me about tap shoe prices and such for her little cousin, who is beginning tap lessons soon. I’ve danced in a few different genres since the age of three, so my knowledge of where to find inexpensive tap shoes for children came naturally.

For any readers that need to purchase either jazz shoes or boots, tap shoes or flat ballet shoes, I urge you to check out the Payless website. The shoes are all under 25 dollars, which is very helpful for children around that annoying growth spurt time. I remember when I was 9 years old, I definitely had to buy all new dance shoes at least twice during the school year. I only wish Payless had this stuff back then!

As a child tap dancer, I understand your lack of shoes woes. The tapping on the floor was the best part, even if I was not always a coordinated individual. My favorite part of tap shoes were the ribbons that we tied as laces for recitals, although I’m sure that the dance team probably does not use those. Good luck!